You're A Fine Girl
by malfoylover01
Summary: Songfic to Looking Glass' Brandy You're a Fine Girl. 'And she hears him say 'Brandy, you're a fine girl, what a good wife you would be, But my life, my lover, my lady, is the sea.'
1. There's a Port on the Western Bay

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_There's a port on a western bay  
And it serves a hundred ships a day  
Lonely sailors pass the time away  
And talk about their homes_

Tortuga. A pirate's haven. Every gentleman of fortune had docked in its infamous harbor at least once in his career. Its crowded streets served as the final frustration to the many military men searching for criminals and pirates, and its ever-open bay a safe place for hunted men. Renegades and whores were its upstanding citizens, and pirate code its law.

The pirates who arrived at Tortuga wanted nothing more than a drink (or a few), a bed, and a willing woman to share it with. Most men in Tortuga merely marked time, waiting for a job, waiting for a ship, or just waiting for their lives to end. Sailors unfortunate enough to be in Tortuga were always bored, and all of them loved to talk. They talked about everything—from their crimes, to their romantic conquests, to the homes they barely remembered. Or, in some cases, the homes they remembered all too well, and missed desperately.


	2. There's a Girl in the Harbor Town

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_And there's a girl in this harbor town  
And she works layin' whiskey down  
They say "Brandy, fetch another round"  
She serves them whiskey and wine_

She pushed her curly hair out of her face impatiently as she grabbed three mugs of sour beer and one of vinegary wine. The owner yelled unceasingly in her general direction, but Brandy hardly noticed; she had learned to tune him out within the first month of her employment here. She worked as a barmaid in the Silver Mermaid, the only occupation for a woman in Tortuga besides being a prostitute. When she had arrived ten years ago, an unwilling passenger on a pirate ship, she had been an undeveloped twelve-year-old. This state of immaturity was the only thing that saved her from a house of ill-repute, and instead she was tossed into the streets to starve.

Or not, as it had turned out. Brandy was now relatively prosperous—better-off than all the 'girls' she knew, anyway—and, while not enjoying her job, tolerated it fairly well. She had to admit that the best part was listening to all the stories the customers told her, usually while deep in their cups. Her favorites were the ones about their half-remembered homes, and occasionally she got a man who was newly removed from the comforts of the hearth. These men tended toward the sentimental, but Brandy enjoyed listening to them the most. They reminded her of the good, soft side of humanity, the side that cared and cried and loved.


	3. And the Sailors Say, 'Brandy'

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_The sailors say "Brandy, you're a fine girl" (you're a fine girl)  
"What a good wife you would be" (such a fine girl)  
"Yeah your eyes could steal a sailor from the sea"_

"Yes, but I'm not getting married anytime soon," she retorted to the obviously drunken pirate who had just pinched her thigh, and then informed her she was a fine girl and her eyes were capable of committing grand larceny.

He _was_ right about her eyes, though. The sea-blue irises were her best feature, and her hair was a close second. The uncontrollable curls were the color of her namesake, a light golden brown with red highlights. The two in combination tended to remind seamen of the ocean and its sunsets. However, the rest of her wasn't anything to sneeze at. Long legs and a coltish frame gave off an air which made her seem seventeen instead of twenty-two. Occasionally her young appearance helped her get out of tight spots, but mostly it got her into them.

However, Brandy would never respond to these men, no matter how flattering their compliments, because Brandy's heart was no longer her own.


	4. Brandy Wears a Braided Chain

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_Brandy wears a braided chain  
Made of finest silver from the North of Spain  
A locket that bears the name  
Of the man that Brandy loves_

She slipped into the back room during a lull in the steady business of the Mermaid and cradled the heart that hung around her neck. She traced the chain that held it, a braided silver chain

"_It's the best silver, love." His voice made her skin tingle as she realized what he was giving her, something that cost more than she made in a year. _

"_I got it in Spain."_

that had seen several months of wear-and-tear since he had left. She let her fingers slide back down to the locket itself, solid silver that bore

"_See there? I got me name put on it for you."_

_Her fingers traced the writing she couldn't read._

his name. Her fingers fluttered over the illegible scribble again and again, remembering what he had told her it said.

"_It's me name, love."_

She inhaled deeply and remembered the timbre of his voice, the beautiful baritone as he read it

"_Jack Sparrow."_

and she thought about the day he had come into the port.


	5. He Came on a Summer's Day

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_He came on a summer's day  
Bringin' gifts from far away  
But he made it clear he couldn't stay  
No harbor was his home_

The ship hobbled into Tortuga harbor, missing three sails, a mast, and most of its crew. Those remaining—a large bearded man with an ugly drinking habit, a slim, bronzed woman, a mute with a blue and gold parrot—deferred to possibly the strangest man she had ever seen in her life.

Half his hair was pulled back in a messy braid, while the rest was in dreadlocks and threaded through beads and trinkets. A large spear of bone protruded from the red bandana tied around his head, and his dark eyes were lined with kohl. He wore a stained white shirt with faded black pants and worn brown boots; a red sash was tied around his waist. However, even beyond his eclectic attire, the most distinctive thing about him was his walk. He appeared to be perpetually drunk, and swayed alarmingly from side to side with each step.

After he had made the necessary arrangements for lodging and repairs for his ship, he staggered into the Silver Mermaid. He announced (loudly) that he wasn't staying, he wanted to get back to his ship, he _needed_ to get back to his ship, he needed the sea.

Which, of course, drew him to Brandy.


	6. The Sailor Said,

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_The sailor said " Brandy, you're a fine girl" (you're a fine girl)  
"What a good wife you would be" (such a fine girl)  
"But my life, my lover, my lady is the sea"_

He ordered rum, and when she brought his sixth (having dug it out from the back of the storeroom—there wasn't much call for rum in the Mermaid; its clientele tended toward sour beer and wine one step from vinegar. The men who wanted it went down to the Faithful Bride) he pulled her down on his lap. She rolled her eyes and attempted to stand up. He jerked her back down and pulled her face close to his.

"Y'know, your eyes look jus' like the ocean," he slurred.

"So I've been told," Brandy snapped, wrinkling her nose at the unaccustomed smell of rum on his breath.

"Wha's your name?"

"Look," Brandy said, "I've got a job to do. And you are in my way."

"Jus' tell me your name. Tha's all," he said. "Then I'll let you go back to your all-importan' job."

"Brandy," she hissed. "Now let go!"

His grip on her waist relaxed and she jumped up and returned to the bar. He called after her, "You're a preddy girl, Brandy. But ye don' need to worry 'bout Ol' Cap'n Jack, 'cause I'm in love with the sea!"

He tilted his tankard up and drained it, then fell backwards out of his chair. Brandy rolled her eyes at the idiocy of pirates and grabbed another tankard of nice, normal beer.


	7. Brandy Used to Watch His Eyes

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_Yeah, Brandy used to watch his eyes  
When he told his sailor stories  
She could feel the ocean foam rise  
She saw its ragin' glory  
But he had always told the truth, lord, he was an honest man  
And Brandy does her best to understand_

Jack stayed in Tortuga for two months, and every night, he sat in the Mermaid and told stories. Brandy became enthralled with his tales, and listened intently. His stories were full of the supernatural and the horrific, featuring characters such and the legendary undead Captain Barbossa and the terrifying Kraken. What she found most intriguing were his eyes. They changed with each legend, not in color, or anything measurable, but inside. She believed Jack was the first pirate she'd ever met who dared to show his emotions, even in his eyes. Most renegades she'd met were very guarded.

When Brandy listened to Jack, she didn't just hear the stories. She felt them, saw them, _was _them. And, if any of his tales were false—she had no doubt they were embellished—if any of his tales were truly false, she couldn't tell. Jack, at least, believed every word.

Around the end of his third week in the Mermaid, she realized she had fallen in love with him.

Around the beginning of his second month, _he_ realized she had fallen in love with him.

And he returned, not love, but at least strong affection. They slept together several times, and the night before he left, be gave her the locket that bore his name.


	8. At Night, When the Bars Close Down

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_At night when the bars close down  
Brandy walks through a silent town  
And loves a man who's not around  
She still can hear him say_

"_I've got to leave, love. I can't stay here. The Pearl's fixed, I've got a crew, and I need to get back to the sea."_

_Her eyes filled with tears. "I hate crying," she growled through the blur her vision had become._

"_Then don't cry, love. Ye knew this day was comin'."_

"_Yes, but you can't leave!" _

"_I know, love, I know," he whispered, rubbing the top of her head as it pressed into his chest._

She snapped out of her reverie just in time to hear the manager throw the last drunk out the door.

"All right, we're closed!" he bellowed.

0

Brandy walked through the streets of Tortuga, aimlessly. She knew it was dangerous, but she didn't care. She needed to think, and a room shared with three other maids was not going to be a good place to do so.

She couldn't believe she had let herself get caught up in those memories again. She had sworn, the day Jack left, to forget about him. But she couldn't take the necklace off, and with the locket came the memories. The good ones and the bad ones.


	9. She Hears Him Say, 'Brandy'

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_She hears him say "Brandy, you're a fine girl" (you're a fine girl)  
"What a good wife you would be" (such a fine girl)  
"But my life, my lover, my lady is the sea"_

She strolled aimlessly, finally making her way down to the dock. She sat on the edge remembering Jack's tales of Barbossa and his cursed crew, and said legendary captain's fascination with apples. Especially green ones.

She replayed the story of Davey Jones and his pet Kraken, and said 'beastie's' long tracking of Jack.

And finally, she remembered Jack himself, with his golden grin and happy-go-lucky attitude. She remembered his words of endearment. And at last, she remembered some of his very first words to her,

_I love the sea._

Those words. The death of her love for a man enraptured by the sea, by her ever-changing moods and fickle affection was held in those four little words.

_I love the sea_.


	10. Brandy, You're a Fine Girl

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

_"Brandy, you're a fine girl" (you're a fine girl)  
"What a good wife you would be" (such a fine girl)  
"But my life, my lover, my lady is the sea"_

She got up to return to her room behind the Mermaid, confident that she had laid her love to rest. She would no longer be haunted by the specter of a man with golden teeth and dreadlocks, a red bandana and a charming grin.

She walked back towards the Mermaid, paying little attention to her surroundings. As she passed a dark alley—of course it was dark, this was Tortuga—she registered a dark figure standing in the shadows.

She sped up, glancing nervously behind her. The figure detached itself from the wall and began to follow her, keeping to the shadows. Brandy broke into a run, not looking behind her, not looking in front of her, just panicking.

She ran into something solid, and hands gripped her wrists. She screamed, hoping someone who cared would hear her.

A familiar voice said, "Easy, love."

Brandy's eyes traveled slowly from worn boots, to a red sash, to a golden grin. As the man who had been chasing her smiled, she whispered,

"Jack?"


	11. Epilogue

Neither the lyrics to "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" nor _Pirates of the Caribbean_ belong to me.

Brandy snuggled deep into the curve of Jack's arm, not really thinking, just feeling. Feeling safe, and warm, and, above all, loved.

"Jack?" she whispered.

"Mmm?"

"Can I come with you when you leave again?"

Jack sat bolt upright and looked at her in disbelief. "Are ye serious, Brandy?"

Brandy nodded timidly.

Jack sighed and lay back down again. "It's no life for a woman, love. It's rough, and uncomfortable, and bloody."

This time Brandy sat up. "Did you think I'd never been uncomfortable before, or seen blood? I work in a tavern, Jack! I'm not innocent. I haven't been innocent in a long time."

Jack pulled her back down into his arms. "Actually, I was hoping ye were sincere about this. I—" he hesitated.

"Yes?"

He sighed. "Ye knew, love, when we started this, I didn't love ye. I liked ye, yes, but I wasn't willing to make this serious. But now…now, something's different."

Brandy couldn't breathe. Was he truly willing to take her with him?

Jack shook himself out of his reverie. "The point is, the answer to your question is yes. If you're willing to put up with ship life, then I'm willing to put ye on a ship." And he drew her into a kiss, a kiss that held safety, and warmth, but above all, love.


End file.
